jw jones - blues society of omaha · pdf filetom hambridge (buddy guy, zz top, joe louis...

WEEKLY BLUES SERIES4727 S 96th Plaza • 402-339-7170

Thurs. shows @ 6pm • Sat. shows @ 8 pmBands subject to change

Volume TwenTy-one, number eighT • AugusT 2016

August 4th ....................................................The Chris Duarte Group August 6th (8 pm) ................................Too Slim and the Taildraggers August 11th ............................................................. Jeff Jensen Band August 13th (8 pm) ................Polly O’Keary and the Rhythm Method August 18th ...............................................Andy T - Nick Nixon Band August 19th (Rock, 9 pm) .............................The BO’Dell Experience August 20th (8 pm) ..........................................................Boondoggle August 25th .......................................... Eddy “The Chief” Clearwater August 26th (Rock, 9 pm) ..................................... Achilles Last Band August 27th (8 pm) ...............................................Country Two PieceSept. 1st .................................... Eddie Turner and the Trouble TwinsSept. 3rd (7 pm) ............................................ The Amanda Fish Band

Go Big Red and Tailgate Blues Party!!!Sept. 8th ......................................... Little Ed and the Blues Imperials

JW JONES RIVER CRUISE

Sunday, August 21st @ 4 pmSee www.rivercitystar.com

for tix & info

JW JONES RIVER CRUISE

Sunday, August 21st @ 4 pmSee www.rivercitystar.com

for tix & info

EDDY CLEARWATER

WednesdayAugust 24th

@ 6 pmZoo Bar, Lincoln

Thursday,August 25th

@ 6 pm21st Saloon

Omaha

EDDY CLEARWATER

WednesdayAugust 24th

@ 6 pmZoo Bar, Lincoln

Thursday,August 25th

@ 6 pm21st Saloon

Omaha

BLUES NEWS • BLUES SOCIETY OF OMAHA

Please consider switching to the GREEN VERSION of Blues Notes. You will be saving the planet while saving BSO some expense. Contact Sher Dostal at [email protected]

to switch to e-mail delivery and get the scoop days before snail mail members!

BLUES ON THE RADIO:Mondays 1pm-3pm on KIOS 91.5 “Blues in the Afternoon” with Mike Jacobs

You can listen to the live stream at www.kios.org

Sundays 9am-Noon on KIWR 89.7 Rick Galusha’s “PS Blues” Pacific Street Blues & Americana podcast:

http://kiwrblues.podOmatic.com/entry/2010-02-03T11_00_49-08_00

Lincoln’s KZUM Radio - Nebraska’s only community radio, and you can listen to it on the web at KZUM.org.

Monday – 3:00-6:00pm “World Gone Wrong Blues”Tuesday – 3:00-6:00pm “Group W Blues”

Wednesday – 3:00-6:00pm “My Deja Blues”Thursday – 3:00-6:00pm “Every Kind of Blue”

Friday – 1:00-3:00pm “Women’s Blues & Boogie” • 3:00-4:30pm “Hudson Blues”Friday – 4:30-6:00pm “Highway Blues”

BLUES NEWS • BLUES SOCIETY OF OMAHA PAGE 3

BSO CORPORATE SPONSORS

Check out B.J. Huchtemann’s column Hoodoo Blues each week in the Omaha READER for info on upcoming shows and other news in the roots-blues music scene.

Look for B.J.’s byline under the Music tab at thereader.com

BLUE CLUB7 Oaks Investments

Michael and Victoria DonaldsonPaul Gerber

Dan and Lanae Grieb Kit & Pam Kelley

Royce M Kreitman Terry O’Halloran

CORPORATEMitch Bolte

Jim Bradford, Jr.Chick Ganz

Conrad Good

Paul Scott Hoagbin Blues Band Craig Kelley, Inserra &

Kelley Law FirmSteve & Lisa Krueger

Roger & Sheri Slosson Dan Van Houten Richard Wolken

Bel Air Merchant’s Association Christy Rossiter & 112 North Duck

Mama’s Pizza WestRa Neurological – RDS Skin Care

West Point Rack

SPECIALBill Bahrke

Matthew Barges Mo Barry

Glenn Bauer Kenny & Linda Benton

John Campbell Geoff Clark Jerry Cyza

David & Kristine Evans Mike & Sally Hansen

Rick Hillyard Troy & Susan Krupicka

Jo Mach Vanessa Marie

Daniel Meyer Greg and Leslie Nichols

John Pollack & Karen Berry Mikel Schmidt & Leslie Eurek

Ann Scolaro Sid Sidner Tim Sorrell

Ernest Sutherlin Bob & Becky Swift Rodney Thorngate

Greg Virant & Lynn Kost Virant Down Under Lounge

Hawk’s BBQ, Chris & Brenda Hawkinson

New York writer Dave Rubin stated, “If Tim “Too Slim” Langford only played slide guitar, he would slither around most other blues guitarists and take a ferocious bite out of their pride. But as the sole six-string slinger, songwriter and lead vocalist of the power trio Too Slim and the Taildraggers, Langford is a force of nature leaving musical tracks others try to follow”.

Those tracks led to Nashville, where Langford has been hanging and work-ing with the big dogs. After teaming up with Grammy-winning producer Tom Hambridge (Buddy Guy, ZZ Top, Joe Louis Walker, George Thorogood, Susan Tedeschi...) Langford headed into the studio to track a new album, Blue Heart, released in June 2013. Now Langford has again teamed up with Tom Hambridge to co-write and record three new songs for the upcoming June 2014 release of “Anthology”. “Anthology” features the recordings of Lang-ford from the Underworld Records catalog spanning the last 15 years. To top it off, in May 2014 through January 2015, Tim “Too Slim” Langford was chosen to be featured at the Nashville International Airport and the Country Mu-sic Hall of Fame alongside the likes of Elton John, Emmylou Harris, Rodney Crowell, Buddy Miller, Ray Stephenson, and The Carolina Chocolate Drops.

Too Slim and the TaildraggersThursday, August 4th @ 6 pm • Zoo Bar, 136 N. 14th Street, LincolnSaturday, August, 6th @ 8 pm • 21st Saloon, 96th & L Street, Omaha

Creating an eclectic style of blues and rock that has become a genre all its own, Tim “Too Slim” Langford’s ev-er-evolving musical direction cannot easily be classified. Too Slim and the Taildraggers effortlessly cross genres, flavoring Blues with Rock and Amer-icana, they appeal to audiences of varying musical tastes.

Tim Langford has won multiple indi-vidual awards for Best Guitarist, Best Slide Guitarist, and Best Songwriter and the band are in the Hall of Fame in three Northwest blues societies. The band’s 2013 release “Blue Heart” reached as high as #3 on the Billboard Top Blues Album Chart and “Shiver”, the band’s previous release, was a

2012 Blues Music Award nominee for “Blues Rock Record-ing of the Year”.

They are currently touring in support of their 2016 release “Blood Moon”, which is getting great reviews.

Too Slim and the Taildraggers current rhythm section con-sists of Nashville bassist Eric “Stretch” Hanson and drum-mer Jeff “Shakey” Fowlkes (Kid Rock, Robert Bradley’s Blackwater Surprise).

From the Too Slim and the Taildraggers Facebook page


What’s New with BluesEd?As we wind down the 2016 BluesEd season we reflect on the great joy this season has brought us but also the great sadness. Joy in seeing our students perform flaw-less sets at some of the best venues and festivals in town including Jazz on the Green, Playing with Fire, Taste of Omaha, Bridge Beats, The 21st Saloon, Alley V and The Waiting Room. Sad-ness in that one of our very own, Anna Abbott, 18 year old vocalist for our BluesEd band, Dilemma, passed away on July 2nd after an asthma attack led to car-diac arrest. She was a true joy to her bandmates and for all of us in BluesEd. She will be greatly missed on the stage and in our daily lives. In her honor, we are establishing an Anna Jane Abbott Memorial Scholar-ship for a BluesEd student to assist in their tuition to the BluesEd program. BluesEd provided Anna with many performance opportunities and mentoring that helped her gain confidence in her musical abilities. Our hope is to encourage other youth to find that same confidence & blossom into a star performer.

Even though we are nearing the end of our official BluesEd season you still have many opportunities to catch our stu-dents perform this month! Voodoo Vi-nyl will be opening up for Davina & the Vagabonds at Jazz on the Green on Thursday, Aug. 4th at the Midtown Crossing stage. Dilemma will perform at the New Generation Music Fes-tival on Friday, Aug. 5th after win-ning their spot from over 70 bands participating in the OEAA Summer Showcase. Four of our bands will be

providing the musical enter-tainment at the Arena-Que BBQ festival at the Ralston Arena on Aug. 6th. Then on Sunday, Aug. 7th be sure to attend the BluesEd Season Finale for all six (Front and Center, The Redwoods, Voo-doo Vinyl, Far & Wide, Us & Them and Dilemma) of our BluesEd bands at The Wait-ing Room Lounge in Benson. This will be a don’t miss event as we say goodbye to our students leaving us for college. Our seniors have provided tremendous lead-ership on and off the stage for our BluesEd program. Several of these students have been in the program for 5 years and have grown into excellent musicians and amazing people during their time in BluesEd.

BluesEd is thrilled to be in-cluded in the 2nd annual In the Market for Blues on Aug. 13th being held at various Old Market venues. Voodoo Vinyl will be opening at the Harney Street Tavern and Dilemma will be opening

at The Dubliner. Finally, The Redwoods, will be opening Playing with Fire on Aug. 27th at the Midtown Crossing stage. Following the headliner (WALTER TROUT!) join The Redwoods for the AfterBurn Jam at Cantina Laredo as our students have an opportunity to play with all the headlin-ers at the Jam.

Be sure to check our BluesEd facebook page and website for all the latest news about BluesEd.

Chris & Kevin Shouse BluesEd Directors


“Full of hell-bent energy, lean and mean, this is about as in-your-face as Texas blues-rock gets, especially in the opening cuts. Duarte holds your attention with a variety of pockets and un-expected textural twists and turns, borrowing a rap groove here and machine-gunning a little Hendrix there.”

Dean Cottrill - HOUR Entertainment Weekly

“This Austin-based six-string virtuoso believed that, in music, the journey is as important as the destination- maybe even more so. Get on the bus. This trip isn’t one you wanna miss.” Kelly Kerr - Tulsa World

Austin-based guitarist, songwriter, and singer Chris Duarte has often been compared with the late Stevie Ray Vaughan. It’s heady stuff for the musician, who plays a rhythmic style of Texas blues-rock that is at times reminiscent of Vaughan’s sound, and at other times reminiscent of Johnny Winter.

The truth is, Duarte has his own sound that draws on ele-ments of jazz, blues, and rock & roll. Although he is humbled by the comparisons with the late Vaughan, the San Anto-nio-raised musician began playing out in clubs there when

The Chris Duarte GroupThursday, August 4th @ 6 pm • 21st Saloon, 96th & L Street, Omaha

he was 15 years old. After Duarte moved to Austin when he was 16, he began taking his guitar playing much more seriously, and at that time, Vaughan was still around playing in Aus-tin-area clubs. Duarte was one of those lucky few thousand who got to see Vaughan at the Continental Club before the late guitarist got his first break with David Bowie.

After a short stint in an Austin jazz band, Duar-te joined Bobby Mack & Night Train and began getting heav-ily into blues at that point. He traveled all over Texas with that band before a big break came his way in 1994, when New York-based Silvertone Records released his critically praised debut album, Texas Sugar/Strat Magik. Tailspin Headwhack fol-lowed in 1997 and Love Is Greater Than Me appeared three years later. Romp from 2003 featured a cover version of Bob Dylan’s “One More Cup” and was followed by the 2007 al-bum Blue Velocity, 2008’s Vantage Point, 2009’s 396, and 2010’s Infinite Energy. My Soul Alone showed up early in 2013, with Lucky 13 arriving in 2014.

Biography by Richard Skelly, source: www.allmusic.com

Polly O’Keary’s eclectic blues style re-flects her colorful history. She grew up in a log cabin with no electricity or plumb-ing, and began her music career a teen working bars in Mexico. At 19 she had a husband in prison and an 8th grade ed-ucation. Twenty years later, she was a bassist for touring blues bands, playing a total of four continents, was one of the Pacific Northwest’s most highly awarded blues artists, and was working toward a Ph.D. Polly is today a five - time Washington Blues Society Best Female Vocalist, a three-time Best Songwriter, has won Best Album from Washington and Inland Empire blues soci-eties, and many more awards.

Groups Polly has toured with include Too Slim and the Tail-draggers, The Soul of John Black, and the Randy Oxford Band.

Polly O’Keary and the Rhythm Method is the trio she built with her fiancee and drummer Tommy Cook, also a high-ly sought touring drummer, with whom she shared rhythm section duties for international touring act Too Slim and the Taildraggers for four years. Rounding out the trio is David Miller, who grew up listening to blues in Texas.

At 17, then living in California, Miller met a piano player who was then working for Tommy Castro. The older musician recruited Miller to come play at several bars, and assured the young man that he could get him in, underage though

POLLY O’KEARY and the RHYTHM METHODWednesday, August 10th @ 6 pm • $8 • Zoo Bar, 136 N. 14th Street, Lincoln

Thursday, August 11th @ 6 pm • 21st Saloon, 96th & L Street, Omaha

he was. Miller became a regular in clubs in the Bay Area, sitting in with local and touring acts night after night. At 25, then living in San Luis Obispo, he assembled The Dave Miller Band, and for the next 18 years, he and the group went on to be-come one of Southern California’s most popular blues bar bands, leading one reviewer to describe his “jaw-dropping guitar licks” and praise his “extraordinary mixture of inspiring virtuosity both vocal-

ly and instrumentally.”

Polly O’Keary and the Rhythm Method’s 2014 debut album “Compass,” reflecting the humor and tragedy of her check-ered life, won international rave reviews, and the trio’s ir-reverent, boisterous and joyful performances immediately established them on the national blues touring circuit.

“It’s been a hell of a ride,” said Polly. “I guess I always thought as a young musician that when I got to 40 or so, I’d be wrapping it up. I was so wrong! I spent a lifetime learning, and I finally feel like I’ve put everything I learned into one place. This band represents 75 years of experience between the three of us and we haven’t wasted a minute of it. There aren’t any two other musicians alive I’d rath-er work with than the guys I’ve got. I’m incredibly excited about these next years.”

From the Polly O’Keary and the Rythm Method website


Helping Anna’sFamily Heal

The Family of Anna Abbott has established a GoFundMe campaign to help with Funeral and

Medical expenses. Please consider donating here: https://www.gofundme.com/2c5qrdw

Anna Jane Abbott just turned 18 and graduated from High school. She sings in the Omaha BluesEd band, Dilemma, and was having the summer of her life. On Tuesday, June 28th, Anna suffered a severe asthma attack, followed by cardiac arrest and is fighting for her life at Omaha Methodist Hospital’s Intensive Care Unit. She will have a long road to recovery and we are raising money to help her family with Medical bills and related expenses. Please join us to begin helping Anna heal!!!

As posted in an update to this campaign, Anna was not able to recover and passed away on July 2nd. At that time, her GoFundMe campaign was changed to “Help-ing Anna’s Family Heal” with her mother, Valerie Ab-bott, becoming the beneficiary of these contributions.

Since then, Anna’s family and friends have shared many opportunities to celebrate her beautiful life. Through her vigil service, funeral mass and interment ceremony, Anna was remembered and those who knew her will continue to keep her bright light shining. It has been especially moving to experience the impact Anna made during her short life and witness the bonds formed be-tween those whose lives she touched.

Throughout this difficult time, the outpouring of love, support and continued generosity of friends, extended family, Anna’s music family, SMM parish, neighbors and countless others who have been deemed, “Anna’s Village”, has been truly overwhelming. To each of you who have contributed to the “Helping Anna’s Family Heal” fund, please know that your donations and com-ments have been read word for word and tears of grat-itude have been shed over your unexpected kindness. Your generosity will go toward helping Anna’s mother and sister confront the expenses associated with this tragic loss.

On behalf of our entire family, all we can say is “thank you”, even though it feels inadequate. Anna’s Vil-lage is awe-inspiring and continues to humble us all.

Peace, love & happiness, Vanessa (Anna’s Aunt)

Royce Michael &JoAnn Kreitman

Open Wedding ReceptionSaturday

August 13th6:00 pm

Roca Tavern4101 MainRoca, NE

Live Music by the Bel Airs of Columbia, MO

The couple requests that your gift be simply sharing in our happiness

Casual attire – think class reunion or backyard BBQ party!!


Austin Young is just that YOUNG! At just 20 years old he possesses a dizzying talent and skill level that is going to take him a long way in the world of music and guitar recognition.

This is just a 3 man band but they pack a punch. The bass player told me the average age of all the band members is 22.

These young men are going places and sooner than later. Nice treat to see these guys here at the Zoo and someday when he is the next Joe Bonnamasa I can say I saw him when was just a kid at the Zoo Bar!

– Conrad Good


BSO SEEKING VOLUNTEERS TO HELP WITH THE 2016 NEBRASKA BLUES CHALLENGE

The annual Nebraska Blues Challenge will be in October this year and we are looking for volunteers to help with the logistics of the event. There will be 3 preliminary shows, and a final competition. We are looking for volunteers to help in contacting the bands with the rules and forms for the competitions. Also looking for volunteers for help during the actual events, with tasks from tracking time for each band’s performance to stage hands for the shows. Basic stuff, we just need the boots on the ground to make it happen. Nick Schultz is working with this upcoming event and could definitely use a hand. Please contact Nick at [email protected] or 402 957 0034.

Sunday Roadhouse Series PresentsCORY BRANAN

Sunday, July 31st @ 5 pm - Reverb LoungeHAYES CARLL with LUKE BELL & JOHN EVANS

Friday, August 5th @ 9 pm – Waiting Room LoungeSARAH BORGES AND THE BROKEN SINGLES

with ERIC “ROSCOE” AMBRELSunday, August 21st @ 5 pm – Waiting Room Lounge

See www.sundayroadhouse.com for tix & info

Sunday Roadhouse Series PresentsCORY BRANAN

Sunday, July 31st @ 5 pm - Reverb LoungeHAYES CARLL with LUKE BELL & JOHN EVANS

Friday, August 5th @ 9 pm – Waiting Room LoungeSARAH BORGES AND THE BROKEN SINGLES

with ERIC “ROSCOE” AMBRELSunday, August 21st @ 5 pm – Waiting Room Lounge

See www.sundayroadhouse.com for tix & info


Sometimes all it takes is a tiny spark to ignite a raging inferno. For Jeff Jensen, the spark oc-curred in 2011. Feeling the need for a fresh start, he loaded up his car to head back to his boy-hood home in California. Just as that journey was to begin, a deep and un-

expected calling starting boiling inside, Jensen changed di-rections and headed to Memphis. There was no job waiting for him; no plan, no family, no band, just a lone friend with a temporary place for him to stay. But our intrepid guitar player felt it was the right move, the only move. In less than thirty hours after arriving, he met Brandon Santini and was offered the opportunity to be his guitarist. Soon after, Jeff became music director for the Brandon Santini Band.

The inferno has been building ever since. After two years, almost 500 shows and three recordings with Santini, Jen-sen re-formed his band with long-time friend and musical collaborator Bill Ruffino (bass). Then they recruited Mem-phis native Robinson Bridgeforth as drummer. They hit the road and never looked back.

Most people are in for a shock the first time they experi-ence a Jeff Jensen Band performance. It starts with the trio mixing an eccentric blend of soul, rock, and American roots music with a deep blues influence. Suddenly Jensen feels the spirit, transforming into a whirling dervish of sight & sound as he bounds across the stage, barely able to contain himself as he wrenches stark, biting six-string explosions from his guitar. His passion is there for all to see, a rare occurrence in these times of buttoned-down music-making. At first, the sheer emotional force he creates can be a bit overwhelming. Then you realize that all art is an expression of the soul, of the power of the life-giving force that created the universe. And Jeff feels it is his responsibility to make the effort to communicate his passion with each member of the audience every night. After all, music is art, and art is the physical form of emotion.

In 2015, Jensen released the vibrant Morose Elephant album that captures the flavor of the band’s creative force. Com-bining seven originals with covers of songs from Memphis Minnie and Amos Milburn plus a traditional gospel hymn, Jensen articulates the depth of his musical vision with help from a number of friends including Victor Wainwright, Reba Russell, and Annie Harris. The disc received even more crit-ical acclaim as the band’s previous release, Road Worn and Ragged (2013), both produced by Jensen. This led to two consecutive Blues Blast Music Award nominations in the Sean Costello Rising Star category (2014/2015).

The band continues to tour the US, Canada and many Euro-pean countries relentlessly, as the inferno shows no signs of burning out. Whenever there is a break in the schedule, Jensen switches roles, acting as the producer with other art-

THE JEFF JENSEN BANDThursday, August 11th @ 6 pm • 21st Saloon, 96th & L Street, Omaha

ists including Mick Kolassa, John Parker and co-producing Santini’s This Time Another Year, nominated for a Blues Mu-sic Award in the Contemporary Blues Album category (2014).

From the Jeff Jensen Band website - biography written by Mark Thompson

PWF PRE-PARTY THANK YOU!The Paul Deslauriers Band (second place finisher at the 2016 International Blues Challenge in Memphis) rides into Omaha for a Friday, August 26 show at the River City Star Pavilion at Miller’s Landing, 151 Freedom Park Road.Sponsored by Playing with Fire, the show is Free and is a Thank You for all past and present PwF volunteers and our loyal fans. But call it a Pre-Party for the August 27 Walter Trout Donate Life Nebraska show at Turner Park Pavilion in Midtown Crossing.Show opener will be BluesED band, Us and Them. Gates open at 5:00pm with music starting at 7:00pm. Hawk’s BBQ will be onsite with food and a cash bar is available so please ‘no outside food or beverages.’So come party with us and celebrate PwF’s 13th year of bringing the “Best of the Blues” to our fans in Omaha!

Jeff Davis • Owner and Producer • Playing with Fire


PLAYING WITH FIRE RETURNS TO SATURDAYS WITH ROSTER OF AWARDING WINNING ARTISTS

WALTER TROUT

Free summer concerts series roars with growlin’ vocals and twangin’ guitars

Playing with Fire (PwF) will celebrate its 13th annual free concert series by returning to our original Sat-urday roots. The series was established in 2004 to bring people together to “celebrate and build com-munity” with the most accomplished international, national and local musical artists. PwF is honored to support the growth of the BluesEd program as the opening band at every show. The Redwoods open for the August 27th date.

On August 27th the ‘Twang Bar Kings’ will bend their strings in support of Donate Life Nebraska. Lincoln’s ‘young gun,’ Levi William marks his return for a sec-ond appearance on the PwF stage. Montreal’s one man band, Steve Hill, winner of the 2016 and 2015 Maple Blues Awards for Electric Act of the Year, En-tertainer of the Year and Guitarist of the Year, 2015 Recording/Producer of the year and, finally, a 2015 Juno Award for Blues Album of the Year, amps it up for headliner, Walter Trout, who requested PwF to produce this show. Walter’s nominations and awards span the continent with his most recent, 2016 Blues Music Award for Rock Blues Album: Battle Scars and Song of the Year for “Gonna Live Again.” Walter came through the ‘darkest times a human being can ex-perience’ as he battled liver failure and a life saving transplant in Omaha at University of Nebraska Medi-cal Center in 2014. Walter returns to Omaha with the release of his new album, “ALIVE in Amsterdam.”

Turner Park will open at 3:30 p.m. The music begins at 4:30 p.m. There is no cost to attend, but free-will donations will be accepted. A percentage of the giv-ing on August 27 will benefit Donate Life Nebraska and its mission to create organ donor awareness. BluesED will host the ever popular, AfterBurn Jams at Cantina Laredo immediately following each con-cert. This year’s AfterBurn Jams at Cantina Laredo are going to explode with crazy! PwF is supported by the Nebraska Arts Council and the Nebraska Cultur-al Endowment, the Douglas County Visitor Improve-ment Fund, the City of Omaha, private sponsorships plus in-kind donations and volunteers. If you would like to donate or learn more about Playing with Fire and the 2016 concert series and artists, visit www.playingwithfireomaha.net. PwF Social media sites are https://www.facebook.com/PlayingWithFireOmaha., https://twitter.com/ PWFireOmaha.


blues in AugusT & sepTemberMon Aug 01Gooch & His Las Vegas Big Band (7:00 pm) (Ozone)Zoo Bar House Band (7:00 pm) (Zoo Bar)

Tue Aug 02First Tuesday Fundraiser with Da Crabby Blues Band Featuring Bucky McCann (6:00 pm) (Schucks)Joanne Shaw Taylor (8:00 pm) (The Waiting Room Lounge)

Wed Aug 03Swampboy Blues Jam (8:00 pm) (Black Eye Dive)

Thu Aug 04The Chris Duarte Group (6:00 pm) (21st Saloon)Too Slim & The Taildraggers (6:00 pm) (Zoo Bar)Stransky Park Concert Series – Swing Fever (7:00 pm) (Stransky Park)Davina and the Vagabonds (6:30 pm) ( Jazz on the Green)

Fri Aug 05Michael Adams & Ricky Williams – 70’s, 80’s, Jazz & R&B (7:30 pm) (The Omaha Lounge)The Sunday Roadhouse presents “Hayes Carll” (9:00 pm) (The Waiting Room Lounge)Peace, Love, Etc. (6 pm) (Bob Kerrey Bridge – Bridge Beats)

Sat Aug 06Too Slim & the Taildraggers (8:00 pm) (21st Saloon)Jens Lehman & the Time Cops (9:30 pm) (Zoo Bar)

Sun Aug 07BluesEd Season Finale (2:00 pm) (The Waiting Room Lounge)Julie Baker-Anderson & Company (7:30 pm) (The Omaha Lounge)Swampboy Blues Band (4 pm) (Corner Bar)

Mon Aug 08Gooch & His Las Vegas Big Band (7:00 pm) (Ozone)Zoo Bar House Band (7:00 pm) (Zoo Bar)

Tue Aug 09Dick Dale (9:00 pm) (The Waiting Room Lounge)

Wed Aug 10Polly O’Keary & Rhythm Method (6:00 pm) (Zoo Bar)Bruce Hornsby and the Noisemakers (7:30 pm) (Sumtur Amphitheater)Swampboy Blues Jam (8:00 pm) (Black Eye Dive)

Thu Aug 11Jeff Jensen Band (6:00 pm) (21st Saloon)Stransky Park Concert Series – The Bel Airs (7:00 pm) (Stransky Park)Kim Waters (6:30) (Jazz on the Green)

Sat Aug 13Polly O’Keary and the Rhythm Method (8:00 pm) (21st Saloon)Emily Bass & A Near Miracle (9:30 pm) (Zoo Bar)

Sun Aug 14Rayford Jones & Friends (7:30 pm) (The Omaha Lounge)Tim Budig Band (4 pm) (Corner Bar)

Mon Aug 15Zoo Bar House Band (7:00 pm) (Zoo Bar)Gooch & His Las Vegas Big Band (7:00 pm) (Ozone)

Tue Aug 16Guitar Shorty (6:00 pm) (Zoo Bar)

Wed Aug 17Brandin Santini (6:00 pm) (Zoo Bar)Swampboy Blues Jam (8:00 pm) (Black Eye Dive)The Jeff Jensen Band (4 pm) (Corner Bar)

Thu Aug 18Andy T Nick Nixon Band (6:00 pm) (21st Saloon)Stransky Park Concert Series – Josh Hoyer & Soul Colossal (7:00 pm) (Stransky Park)

Fri Aug 19The Old No 5s (6:00 pm) (Dillon Brothers Harley-Davidson)Bo’Dell Experience (9:00 pm) (21st Saloon)Paa Kow (9:00 pm) (Zoo Bar)The Prairie Gators (6 pm) (Bob Kerrey Bridge – Bridge Beats)

7:00PM-10:00PMTHE ZOO BAR HOUSE BAND

FREE ADMISSION

HEY BANDS & BARSIf you want your schedule printed monthly

in BLUES NOTES, e-mail to [email protected]

All schedules must be received by the 23rd of each month. Get calendar updates @

www.omahablues.com


blues in AugusT & sepTember

WEEKLY OPEN BLUES JAMS— Tuesdays, 6 to 9 —

PRIL’S JAM - 21ST SALOON96th & L Street, Omaha

— Wednesdays, 8 to 11 —BLACK EYE DIVE

72nd & Harrison, Omaha

FIRST TUESDAY FUNDRAISERWith the Crabby Blues Band

featuring Bucky McCannTuesday, August 2nd from 6 to 9 pm

Shucks, 119th & Pacific, OmahaAll proceeds to benefit Voices For Children

Sat Aug 20Boondoggle (8:00 pm) (21st Saloon)The Old No 5s (9:00 pm) (Roadhouse Saloon)A Ferocious Jungle Cat (9:30 pm) (Zoo Bar)

Sun Aug 21Blues Cruise – featuring JW Jones (4:00 pm) (River City Star)Scott Ellison (4 pm) (Corner Bar)


Wed Aug 24Eddy “The Chief” Clearwater (6:00 pm) (Zoo Bar)Swampboy Blues Jam (8:00 pm) (Black Eye Dive)

Thu Aug 25Eddy “The Chief” Clearwater (6:00 pm) (21st Saloon)

Fri Aug 26Achilles Last Stand (9:00 pm) (21st Saloon)Evan Bartels & The Stoney Lonesomes (9:00 pm) (Zoo Bar)

Sat Aug 27Playing with Fire (3:30 pm) (Turner Park at Midtown Crossing)The Mighty Jailbreakers (8:00 pm) (The Stave)Country Two Piece (8:00 pm) (21st Saloon)The Allendales (9:00 pm) (Zoo Bar)

Sun Aug 28The Cooley Strawn Duo (8:30 pm) (The Omaha Lounge)


Wed Aug 31Swampboy Blues Jam (8:00 pm) (Black Eye Dive)

Thu Sep 01Eddie Turner and the Trouble Twins (6:00 pm) (21st Saloon)

Mon Sep 05Gooch & His Las Vegas Big Band (7:00 pm) (Ozone)

Tue Sep 06First Tuesday Fundraiser with Da Crabby Blues Band Featuring Bucky McCann (6:00 pm) (Schucks)

Fri Sep 09Lil Ed & The Blues Imperials (9:00 pm) (Zoo Bar)Josh Hoyer and Soul Colossal (8 pm) (Corner Bar)

Sun Sep 11Rockin Johnny Burgin (4 pm) (Corner Bar)



Wed Sep 21Nikki Hill (6:00 pm) (Zoo Bar)



“With his powerful left-handed guitar playing, unique hybrid of West Side blues, relentless rockabilly and high energy performances, Eddy “The Chief” is Chica-go’s premier blues showman.”

- Chicago Tribune

“Clearwater is equally adept at Chuck Berry-style guitar as he is at deeper blues style. He’s a fine singer who puts on a wild, exciting show...the sort of exuberant enter-tainer who can turn a concert into a party.”

- New York Times

Once dismissed by purists as a Chuck Berry imitator (and an accurate one at that), tall, lean, and lanky Chicago southpaw Eddy Clearwater is now recognized as a prime progenitor of West Side-style blues guitar. That's not to say he won't liven up a gig with a little duck-walking or a frat party rendition of "Shout"; after all, Clearwater brings a wide array of influences to the party. Gospel, country, '50s rock, and deep-down blues are all incorporated into his slashing guitar attack. But when he puts his mind to it, "The Chief" (a nickname accrued from his penchant for donning Native American headdresses on-stage) is one of the Windy City's finest Bluesmen.

Eddy Harrington split Birmingham, AL, for Chicago in 1950, initially billing himself on the city’s South and West sides as Guitar Eddy. His uncle, Rev. Houston H. Harrington, handed his nephew his initial recording opportunity; the good rever-end operated a small label, Atomic-H. Eddy made the most of it, laying down a shimmering minor-key instrumental, “A-Mi-nor Cha Cha,” and the Berry-derived “Hillbilly Blues” (both on Delmark’s Chicago Ain’t Nothin’ but a Blues Bandanthology).

Drummer Jump Jackson invented Eddy’s stage moniker as a takeoff on the name of Muddy Waters. As Clear Waters, he waxed another terrific Berry knock-off, "Cool Water," for Jackson's LaSalle logo. By the time he journeyed to Cincinnati in 1961 to cut the glorious auto rocker "I Was Gone," a joyous

EddY “The Chief” ClearwaterWednesday, August 24th @ 6 pm • Zoo Bar, 136 N. 14th Street, LincolnThursday, August 25th @ 6 pm • 21st Saloon, 96th & L Street, Omaha

"A Real Good Time," and the timely "Twist Like This" for Federal Records producer Sonny Thompson, he was official-ly Eddy Clearwater. Things were sparse for quite a while af-ter that; Clearwater occasionally secured a live gig dishing out rock and country ditties when blues jobs dried up.

But Rooster Blues’ 1980 release of The Chief, an extraor-dinarily strong album by any standards, announced to the world that Eddy Clearwater’s ascendancy to Chicago blues stardom was officially underway. The ‘90s found Clearwa-ter waxing two encores for Rooster Blues, a set for Blind Pig (1992’s Help Yourself), Mean Case of the Blues, in 1996 on his reactivated Cleartone Records, followed by Cool Blues Walk in 1998, Chicago Daily Blues in 1999, and Reservation Blues in mid-2000. With consistently exciting live perfor-mances, Clearwater cemented his reputation as a masterful showman whose principal goal is to provide his fans with a real good time. Keeping in that tradition, Clearwater teamed up with like minded showmen Los Straitjackets, releasing Rock n Roll City in 2003 on Rounder, followed five years lat-er by his first session for the Alligator label, West Side Strut.

Clearwater’s 2008 West Side Strut is his first release for the Alligator label, and while nothing here is a surprise, Clear-water’s Chicago blues / Chuck Berry hybrid remains evident as he works his way through a mix of rock & roll, country, soul, and gospel. Along with Clearwater is a stellar group of fellow Windy City musicians led by second guitarist (and pro-ducer) Ronnie Baker Brooks and his band, a horn section, and appearances by Billy Branch on harp, guitarist Lonnie Brooks, and backup vocals by Otis Clay and Jimmy Johnson. Spirited cover versions of Muddy Waters’ “Walking Through the Park” and Lowell Fulson’s “Trouble, Trouble” are highlights, as are the gutbucket blues “A Good Leavin’ Alone,” “Blue Over You,” and the autobiographical “They Call Me the Chief.” West Side Strut is another solid effort for the Chief and Alligator, as well.

From www.allmusic.com, bio by Bill Dahl


Sunday, July 31st @ 4 pmAndy T Band featuring R J Mischo

Sunday, August 7th @ 4 pmSwampboy Blues Band

Sunday, August 14th @ 4 mThe Tim Budig Band

Wednesday, August 17th @ 4 pmThe Jeff Jensen Band

Sunday, August 21st @ 4 pmScott Ellison

Saturday, August 27th @ 9pmThe Riptide Refugees

Friday September 9th @ 8 pmJosh Hoyer and Soul ColossalSunday, September 11th @ 4 pm

Rockin’ Johnny BurginAll Free, No Cover Shows!!

Thursday, July 28thBILLY McGUIGAN AND THE

OMAHA BIG BANDOmaha Ballroom giving Swing Dance

lessons before the show

Thursday, August 4thDAVINA AND THE VAGABONDS

BluesEd band VOODOO VINYL opens @ 6:30

Thursday, August 11thKIM WATERS

Brownell-Talbot School’s RAIDER BLUES JAZZ COMBO

opens @ 6:30

BANDS AND VENUES…HELP US HELP YOU!!! HELP US PUT MORE BUTTS IN MORE SEATSThe Blues Society of Omaha maintains a powerful calendar of events on its website, omahablues.com. We invite all venue and band managers to take advantage of this free opportunity for promotion. Since we are an all volunteer organization, we ask you to get an account and help us by maintaining your digital space on this calendar.Our calendar has the following features:• A real-time page showing the most timely upcoming events.• A powerful search engine for users to find specific events by name, venue, band, and date.• Events pages that allow rich text, photos, and external links to band site and venue pages. Much of the page is generated automatically from

the venue page. It also makes it easy for use to add events to their calendar and to use a map.• Venue pages that allow contact information and photos, map insets linked to full mapping, and links to external sites.• For bands, we have a band listing page with links to individual band pages. These are full free-form WordPress pages supporting text, graphics

and links.• The site works well on mobile devices like smartphones.If you are interested, please contact Sid Sidner at [email protected] to learn more and to get registered for a free account today.

Musical genres supported by the Blues Society of Omaha on our calendar.Blues • Surf Rock • R & B • Jazz • Rockabilly • Funk • Soul • Roots • Swing • Americana • Rock & Roll • Blue Grass


Elmore magazine said, “This band swings oh so soulfully! Traditional blues lovers listen up – your blues is here as fresh as ever. Nick has one of those unmistakably killer blues voices, capable of growl-ing and crooning within the same song. But, for the most part their sound is very smooth, anchored by the clean, T-Bone Walker guitar style of Andy T.”

The Andy T-Nick Nixon Band, fronted by guitarist Andy T and vocalist Nick Nixon, displays musi-cianship at its highest. As Blues Underground Network said, “Simply put, Andy T and James ‘Nick’ Nixon have quickly ris-en to the top of many people’s lists of Great Collaborations.” Their new release on Blind Pig Records, Numbers Man, was pro-duced by renowned Texas guitarist Anson Funderburgh, and features the great Kim Wilson’s harmonica on one of the tracks. Guitarist “Andy T” Talamantez arrived in Nashville from South-ern California in 2008 and teamed up with local blues and R&B legend vocalist/guitarist James “Nick” Nixon in 2011. After meeting Nick and watching him perform, Andy knew that they would make an unstoppable combination. As Ted Drozdowski of the Nashville Scene put it, “When Andy first heard Nick, he knew he’d found his foil for the group he envisioned — an outfit that could swing effortlessly between West Coast jump blues stompers, hardcore Chicago and Texas string-fests, and Louisiana swamp grooves.”

Andy T’s jazz-tinged guitar style is influenced by T-Bone Walker, B.B. King, Magic Sam, and Albert Collins among others, yet it remains his own. He was born and raised in Southern California and was always interested in guitar. He worked for twenty-three years as a manufacturing engineer in the aerospace industry but during that entire time he never stopped performing in local bands. In 1997 he quit his day job to join and tour with Smokey Wilson’s band. That lasted for two years, after which he played in Guitar Shorty’s band for a period of five years. During that time he toured internationally and performed with a long list of major blues artists around the country, learning how to back up a vocalist with economy and perfection as he honed his own playing style.

The velvet-voiced Nixon, whose singing recalls Jimmy With-erspoon and Billy Eckstine, was born and raised in Nashville, where got his first taste of singing through the gospel tunes he learned every Sunday in church. In high school, he sang op-era. The choir director, a famous opera singer, “found out I had this voice and he had me singing opera. It was kind of put on me and I really didn’t like that style of music,” Nixon says. “But I did it and the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do was to un-do that opera-style singing when I started in with rock-n-roll and the blues. But I did learn a lot of voice control (singing opera) that I still use now. The clarity of opera is something that I still use, too, but I just put in more gravel, a little more dirt with it when I’m singing the blues.”

Nixon quickly went on to become an important part of the musical mix in Nashville and something of an institution in the Music City. In the early 60’s he was the lead singer for the popular group King James and The Sceptres – one of Music City’s first integrated bands. They would play co-bills with the likes of Lazy Lester, Rufus Thomas, and Cootie Stark, to name a few. Nick was also a long-time member of The New Imperials, a soul group with a forty-five year history, performing with

ANDY T – NiCK NiXON BANDThursday, August 18th @ 6 pm • 21st Saloon, 96th & L Street, Omaha

many of the top blues and R&B artists in the world.

The Andy T-Nick Nixon Band has released two crit-ically acclaimed albums on the Delta Groove label, both of which were produced by Anson Funder-burgh.

Their debut CD, Drink Drank Drunk, was released in 2013. Music Row said, “Nixon’s deep-blues vo-cal delivery and Andy’s stinging guitar chops are fabulous together throughout their CD…They will

rock your world.” Elmore magazine added, “These veterans may be new names to you but not for long.” The album found its way onto almost everyone’s “Best of 2013” list and was nominated for a Blues Blast Music Award for best “New Artist Debut Release.”

The following year the band released their second CD, Livin’ It Up, which was nominated for a Blues Music Award as “Best Traditional Blues Album,” as well as a Blues Blast Music Award in the same category.

From the Andy T – Nick Nixon Band website


Thursday, August 4th @ 6 pm

Too Slim and the Taildraggers

Wednesday, August 10th @ 6 pm

Polly O’Keary and the Rhythm Method

Friday, August 12th @ 9 pmThe Bel Airs

Tuesday, August 16th @ 6 pm Guitar Shorty


Brandon Santini


Eddy “The Chief” Clearwater

JOANNE SHAW TAYLORwith the Hector Anchondo Band

Tuesday, August 2nd @ 8 pm

BluesEd SEASON FINALEAll 6 BluesEd Bands performing

Sunday, August 7th @ 2 pm Free Show!!

DICK DALETuesday, August 9th @ 9 pm

Tix & info @ www.waitingroomlounge.com


“Blues – rooted yet suffi-ciently eclectic to please fans of many genres ... Most impressive are the originals ... a set that showcases TURNER as a forward looking stylist.”

--LIVING BLUES

“A monster guitar player. Reminds me of my good friend Jimi.”

--Stephen Stills

“Otherworldly”, “scorching”, “polyrhythmic” and “chill-ing” have all been used to describe Eddie Turner’s gui-tar playing.

His ethereal style is an amalgam of the Afro-Cuban rhythms of his heritage and the music that influenced him as a teen-ager: Chicago blues, jazz, rhythm & blues and psychedelic rock.

Eddie “Devil Boy” Turner picked up his first guitar when he was twelve. Cuban born but raised in Chicago, he moved to the Rockies in the early 70’s to attend the University of Colorado. More inspired by music than by academia, Turner

EDDIE TURNERThursday, September 1st @ 6 pm • 21st Saloon, 96th & L Street, Omaha

immersed himself in the local music scene, and stints with some notable acts ensued.

Turner got the chance to grab at the brass ring when Col-orado compadre Tommy Bolin left his band Zephyr to form The James Gang and Deep Purple. Eddie eagerly joined the hard rock, psychedelic blues band Zephyr as a guitarist, singer and songwriter. But, tragedy struck with the sudden death of Zephyr lead singer Candy Givens.

A decade later, when Eddie was invited to join the Ron Miles electric band led by one of the country’s premier trumpet-ers, he jumped at the chance. Then, in 1995 he rounded out the Otis Taylor Band adding what Guitar Player maga-zine describes as “otherworldly atmospherics (which) lend a decidedly cosmic ambience to Taylor’s sound.” Enhancing the spice and flavor of the trio, Eddie recorded five ground-breaking CDs, and toured the U.S. and Europe extensively.

Signed to the Northern Blues Label, Turner has released three acclaimed CD’s (Rise, The Turner Diaries, and Miracles & Demons) and evolved as one of the hottest genre-melding contemporary blues artists. A statement solidified by a 2006 Blues Music Award nomination for Best New Artist Debut and recent 2011 Blues Blast Music Award (Best Contempo-rary CD). These recordings showcase Eddie’s vocals and songwriting as well as the range of chops, techniques and influences of his evolutionary guitar playing.

From the Calgary Blues Fest website

Come out to the 21st Saloon for the Fresno State vs. Ne-braska game and catch the Amanda Fish Band from K.C. The band will be playing before the game and at half time as well.

“I’ve rarely heard a singer who can bring such a wide range of emotions from sweet, forlorn, strong, desperate and shattered. Her original songs are a showcase for Amanda’s soul and expression and range. I am moved.”

--BOB MARGOLIN

Amanda Fish is the latest artist to break out nationally from the fertile ground of the Kansas City music scene, which also spawned her sister Samantha and the popu-lar Trampled Under Foot. Fish is an Indie Blues artist from Kansas City who scratched her name into the scene as a solo artist before teaming up with slide guitarist and Stone Cutters Union frontman Sean McDonnell to form the Amanda Fish Band in May 2014. The pair penned DOWN

THE AMANDA FISH BANDGO BIG RED AND BLUES TAILGATE PARTY

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 3RD – GAME TIME 7 PM • 21ST SALOON, 96TH & L STREET, OMAHA

IN THE DIRT, a concept album consisting of in-tensely personal lyrics branching into multiple genres while still firm-ly rooted in Blues. Round-ing out the current lineup are guitarist Cole Dilling-ham, bassist Cliff Moore, and new drummer Adam Watson. The band fea-tures Amanda’s spell-binding vocals alongside hypnotic, slide-heavy guitar riffs locked into a sturdy groove, giving this quintet their unique and com-pelling sound.

From the Vizztone Records website


BSO BAND DIRECTORYBand Contact Phone # / EmailCOUNCIL BLUFFSThe Packages..................................................................................Rick Hillyard ...........................................................................................712-420-1232Street Level Band ...........................................................................Steven Rains ...................................................... 402-980-7898 / [email protected]

FREMONTPunching Puppets ...........................................................................Lance Clark ................................................402-727-1999 / [email protected]

HASTINGSPeace Hogs .....................................................................................Rich Mattison ................................................402-469-5818 / [email protected] B. and the XYZ’s ..............................................................Byron Starr .............................................................................................402- 462-5879

KEARNEYKate Fly ...............................................................................................................................................................308-627-3021 / [email protected]

LINCOLNBlues Messengers ...........................................................................Jake Wiese ...............................................................................................402-601-4959Church House Blues Band .............................................................Danny Dakan................................................. 402-890-2533 / [email protected] Dust Jackets ............................................................................Travis Koester ....................................................402 560 8415 / www.dustjackets.comJared’s GoodTime BluesParty ........................................................Jared Alberico .........................................................................................402-474-2473John Walker and the New Hokum Boys.........................................John Walker .............................................................................................402-466-7254Josh Hoyer & the Soul Colossal .....................................................Josh Hoyer ............................402-416-3846 / [email protected]. Stephens Blues Project ..............................................................Lary Lehman ........................................................................................1-800-422-1340Levi William ..................................................................................Levi William 402-310-2681, Cindy Patton 402-850-8549 / [email protected] Mezcal Brothers ......................................................................Gerado Meza ...........................................................................................402-438-5120The Tijuana Gigolos .......................................................................Marty Steinhousen ..................................................................................402-742-5892Tim Budig Band ........................................................................................................................................................503-719-3969 / [email protected] Blues Band .......................................................................Caleb Long ..............................................................................................402-430-1792

OMAHA112 North Duck .............................................................................Michelle .......................................................... 402-210-9378 / [email protected] Alley Blues ............................................................................Craig A. Hassa ........................................................................................402-594-9147Backer’s Blues ................................................................................Jeff Kangas ..............................................................................................402-650-8580Banjo Loco .....................................................................................Blind Burrito ...........................................................................................402-850-0245Blue House with the Rent to Own Horns ......................................Joe Putjenter ........................................................402- 658-2222 / [email protected] The Blues Explosion ......................................................................Dave Skinner ...........................................................................................402-330-7366BluesEd ..........................................................................................Chris Shouse ...................................................... [email protected] / 402-578-3133Brad Cordle Band ..........................................................................Brad Cordle ...................................................... 702-533-2427 / [email protected] Brown and the Basement Devils .........................................Chuck Brown ..........................................................................................402-610-1522Dilemma .........................................................................................Chris Shouse .................................................... [email protected] / 402-578-3133Drew Jude and the Cool Tones .......................................................Drew Jude ...............................................................................................402-714-1244Elwin James and the Way Outs ......................................................Patrick Peters ..................................................402-292-6435 / [email protected] Walker ................................................................................George Walker .........................................................................................402-871-1469Hector Anchondo Band ..................................................................Hector Anchondo ...................................402-215-3956 / [email protected] Crews Blues ...........................................................................John Crews ..............................................................................................402-714-7634Johnny Reef & the Shipwrecks ......................................................Tommy Kriegshauser ................................402-517-8248 / [email protected] Nila and the Jazz Ninjas .......................................................Jorge Nila ...............................................................................................402-932-JAZZThe Kris Lager Band ......................................................................Kris Lager ...............................................................................................402-304-7269Life of Riley ...................................................................................Rebecca Packard ................................................. 402-699-0958 / [email protected] Joe and Big Trouble ..............................................................Little Joe McCarthy ................................................. 402-680-2924 / [email protected] De Luca & the R & M Blues Band .........................................Lou De Luca ...................................................... 402-677-7156 / [email protected] James Band .........................................................................L.J. Johnson ................................................................ 402-213-5234 / [email protected] Matt Gagne Blues Experience ................................................Matt Gagne .............................................................402-212-0694 / [email protected] Mighty Sapphire Kings ...........................................................Bill Ferleman ...........................................................................................402-658-1785Mojo Bag .......................................................................................Barb Fisher ..............................................................................................402-968-1127Neptunes ........................................................................................John Hartley ................................................................402-995-2926 or 402-391-4762The Omaha Blues Society All-Stars ..............................................Craig Balderston ........................................................ 402-208-1068 / [email protected] Scott Hoagbin Blues Band .....................................................Paul Scott Hoagbin ................................... 402-689-1183 / [email protected] Rex Granite Band....................................................................Kevin Loomis ....................................................... 402-306-9342 / rexgranite@cox,netRhythm Collective Reggae .............................................................Frank Fong ..............................................................................................402-556-3568Rich Patton Blues and more ...........................................................Rich Patton ..................................................402- 841-1110 / [email protected] Mattison and the Peace Hogs .................................................Rich Mattison ..........................................................................................402-469-5818Sailing In Soup ...............................................................................Gunnar Guenette ..................................................................................... 402 599-9255Soulfinger .......................................................................................Barry Clark ...................................................................................... [email protected] Nelson Trio ...........................................................................Mike Nelson ............................................................................................402-612-1250Stephen Monroe .............................................................................Stephen Monroe ......................................................................................402-699-5905Steve Lovett Blues Band AND Steve Lovett-Solo Acoustic Blues .....Steve Lovett ............................................................402-660-7146 / [email protected] Stimulus Packages ..................................................................Rick Hillyard ........................................................................................... 712-420 1232Sue Murray / The WILDFIRE Band ..............................................Sue Murray .................................................. 402-533-4791 / [email protected] Thorne Group ......................................................................Susan Thorne ........................................................................................... 402 968-4991Swampboy ......................................................................................Tim Koehn .........................................402-830-0021 / [email protected] Shop Radio ..........................................................................K.C. Kelley .............................................................................................319-431-3508Vintage ...........................................................................................Charlie Ames ....................................816-678-8360 / [email protected]


“Raw-boned, old-fashioned Chicago blues has a new young master – Lil’ Ed Williams.” –New York Times

“Ed plays slide guitar like a back-alley shiv...high-decibal, gutbucket blues at its most brutally honest.”

–Chicago Sun-Times

“A party band in the best sense of the word...the hottest purveyors of bottleneck boogie to come out of Chicago since Hound Dog Taylor .” –Boston Globe

Lil’ Ed & the Blues Imperials were among the premiere party bands to come out of Chicago during the ‘70s and ‘80s. Of-ten compared to Elmore James and Hound Dog Taylor, fiery, flamboyant slide guitarist Lil’ Ed Williams and his group have continued to play dedicated, rough-edged, and hard-rocking dance music, establishing an international reputation that has lasted into the new millennium. A native of Chicago, Wil-liams was first inspired by his uncle, renowned slide guitarist J.B. Hutto, with whom he studied as a young teen. Hutto not only taught him slide, but also introduced Williams to bass and drums. Williams’ half-brother, James “Pookie” Young, was also a student of Hutto, and later became the bassist for the Blues Imperials. The brothers co-founded their group in the early ‘70s and went professional in 1975, playing at Big Duke’s Blue Flame on the West Side. The gig earned them a whopping six bucks, which the group members split evenly. In those early years, Williams worked days at a car wash while Young drove a school bus.

Despite their humble start, Williams and the Blues Imperials kept performing at night and by the early ‘80s had devel-oped a substantial regional following. Signing to Alligator in the mid-’80s, they released their debut album, Roughhousin’, in 1986 and found themselves receiving national attention. They began playing urban clubs and festivals all over the country and eventually toured Canada, Europe, and Japan. They released their second album, Chicken, Gravy & Biscuits, in 1989, and the success continued as the Blues Imperials began appearing with such artists as Koko Taylor and Elvin Bishop during the Alligator Records 20th anniversary tour. They released their third album, What You See Is What You Get, in 1992.

If Ed, Pookie, and the latest members of the revamped Blues Imperials never did much to modernize their blues or develop a new sound, that was just fine with the band’s followers (“Edheads,” no less), to whom the raucous, rocking slide gui-

Thursday, Sept 8th @ 6 pm • 21st Saloon, 96th & L Street, Omaha

Friday, Sept 9th @ 9 pm • Zoo Bar, 136 N. 14th Street, Lincoln

tar heritage of Hutto, Hound Dog Taylor, and Elmore James is blues nirvana. Following its third album, the group went on hiatus for a few years, during which Lil’ Ed Williams re-leased two albums on Earwig, 1996’s Keep on Walkin’ with Dave Weld and 1998’s Who’s Been Talking with Willie Kent. In 1999 the band reconvened and released Get Wild. They followed it up with Heads Up, their fifth Alligator record, in 2002. Their sixth, Rattleshake, appeared in 2006, followed by their seventh, Full Tilt, two years later. The band released the album Jump Start in 2012 to rave reviews.

From the Billboard.com website, bio written by Jim O’Neal & Sandra Brennan


Bridge Beats at the base of the Bob Kerrey BridgeFridays @ 6 pm – Food Trucks on siteFriday, August 5th - Peace, Love, Etc.

Friday, August 19th – The Prairie GatorsSee www.bridgebeats.com for more info and FAQ’s

8/4: Swing Fever8/11: The Bel Airs8/18: Josh Hoyer and Soul Colossal


CDReviewCDReview

This CD is very sparse. It is Appleton on guitar and vocals, Ricci on harp, and bass is supplied by Tim Lefebvre or Neal Heidler. Ricci is known for pushing the envelope in his harp playing, but on this outing he plays in a much more traditional style. This is not to say it is pedestrian, be-cause he sounds great throughout the CD!

Appleton is a fine singer, although I found it interesting that Ricci only sings two songs. It might have been determined that Appleton’s style works better on this sort of Sonny Terry/Brownie McGhee style disc, and that is probably true.

The traditional blues leaning of this CD is exemplified by a great cover of Blind Willie Johnson’s Nobody’s Fault But Mine. There is also an interesting cover of the Jagger/Richards song Black Limousine. Most of the other songs are written by Appleton or Ricci.

This CD might be a stretch for some Ric-ci fans, but I find it refreshing that artists can explore the roots of the blues and still push its limits at other opportunitiest. I highly recommend this CD.

--A.J. FoytThe Blues Society of Omaha

JJ Appleton and Jason RicciDirty Memory

Old Boy Network

21st Saloon Friday Night Shows9 pm show times and

some great Rock Bands!!Friday, August 19th

BO’ DELL& THE RELICS

Friday, August 26thACHILLES LAST BAND

(Zeppelin Tribute)

JOHNNY BOYDThursday

September 29th @ 8 pm

Reverb Lounge

blues socieTy of omAhAPresident ...............Mark Grubbs - [email protected] - 402-598-8644Vice President ............................................. Glenn Bauer - [email protected] ............................................................ Kit Kelley - [email protected] Treasurer ....................................................Ric Cowger - [email protected] ....................................... Bonnie Mercer - [email protected] Coordinators ...........................Lisa & Steve Krueger - 402-619-0309Membership Coordinator .............Sher Dostal - [email protected] Coordinator ............................................................................. pendingAdvertising Coordinator ..........Annette Jensen - [email protected] Coordinator ...........................................Cinda Tully - [email protected] Lincoln Representative .......................................... Jo Mach - [email protected]

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Corporate Donor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $125 ● Monthly Newsletter – Blues Notes


Blue Club Donor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $250 ● Monthly Newsletter – Blues Notes

● 5 Membership Cards provide member discounts for 5 persons ● Name Listed in Blues Notes Newsletter ● 1st Month Free Business Card Advertisement

YES, GO GREEN! I choose to receive my monthly newsletter by email rather than by U.S. Mail. I understand that BSO's cost to print & mail my newsletter would be $20/year and I want BSO to use the entirety of my membership donation for better purposes in the cause to promote blues music. NO, I prefer to receive my newsletter by U.S. Mail. I understand that BSO's cost to print & mail my newsletter is $20/year. Therefore, I have considered an additional donation so that BSO is able to use more funds for better purposes in the cause to promote blues music. ADDITIONAL DONATION: $ __________ BSO would welcome any additional donation you might care to make towards our ongoing projects including the BluedEd youth program, Nebraska Blues Challenge band competitions, website upgrades, events, and many more.

Thank you for your tax deductible donations. Your generous support will help Keep the Blues Alive !!! A Non-Profit 501(c)(3) Corporation Keepin’ the Blues Alive! Keepin’ the Blues Alive!

LOOKING FOR BSO MERCHANDISE COORDINATOR/ASSISTANTBSO is seeking a volunteer to either take over the Merchandise Coordinator position,

or, work as an assistant with our current Merchandise Coordinator.JOB DESCRIPTION/DUTIES

Merchandise Coordinator-Order and maintain inventory • Stock displays / manage storage / manage event set-upsCoordinate merchandise volunteers for events • Manage receipts and report to Treasurer-Report at BSO meetings

Merchandise Assistant-Stock displays / manage storage / manage event set-upsCoordinate merchandise volunteers for events • Manage receipts and report to Merchandise Coordinator

If you are interested in volunteering, or, if you have any questions, please contact Jeff Malloy at [email protected] or call 402-536-0739. Training will be provided.

jw jones - blues society of omaha · pdf filetom hambridge (buddy guy, zz top, joe louis...

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